Okay, famed scientist James Lovelock didn’t say that second part. But the Daily Mail headline of a recent interview with the creator of the Gaia theory makes clear that this blog is can hardly be accused of real climate alarmism:
Why he thinks we’re doomed:
“It was last as hot as this 55 million years ago. There was a geological accident in the North Sea, near where Norway is. A volcanic layer of lava came up underneath one of the large petroleum deposits. It vaporised the whole lot, putting into the atmosphere about two million, million tons of crude oil.
“We will have put that much into the atmosphere within the next 20 years or so. We know what happened last time, we know how long it lasted. It hung around for about 200,000 years….”
“Everything moved to the North,” Lovelock explains. “The Arctic Ocean was tropical, the sea temperature was 23C (73F). You could find the remains of crocodiles in the sediments.”
[Jim -- you forgot to mention sea levels were 250 feet higher!]
As for what will happen to humankind:
We will face a ruthless period of natural selection.
“I reckon there are about 80 per cent more people than the world can carry,” he says sanguinely….
“By 2040, China will be uninhabitable.” Lovelock believes that the Chinese, because of their high levels of industrial activity, will be the first to suffer, with the death of all plant life.
“So I think the Chinese will go to Africa. They are already there, preparing a new continent – the Chinese industrialists who claim to be out there mining minerals are just there on a pretext of preparing for the big move.
Okay, so now you’re thinking he’s a crackpot. But then he appeals to your vanity:
Lovelock sees Americans moving to Canada. Americans have the natural advantage of being born migrants….
“White Americans are descended from those who had the guts to cross on rough old ships and find a new life. They have the right spirit of can-do.”
Hmm. Interesting sentiment. Guess he’s not an Obama-maniac. Europeans, however, have got it all wrong:
“European governments are doing daft things, investing huge sums in renewable energy which makes a hell of a lot of profit but does no good at all for our survival.”
No greenie, he. In fact, in an earlier interview he said:
“Green,” he tells me, only half-joking, “is the color of mold and corruption.”
But don’t feel bad, humanity. We were probably doomed all along:
Language Intelligence: Lessons on persuasion from Jesus, Shakespeare, Lincoln, and Lady Gaga
